Jessica Brown Findlay could be making a return to the big screen in Winter's Tale.

The Downton Abbey star, best known for playing Lady Sybil Crawley in the ITV hit drama, is set to start auditioning for a role in producer Akiva Goldsman's upcoming supernatural period thriller, according to The Hollywood Reporter's Heat Vision blog.

Tom Hiddleston, Benjamin Walker, Lily Collins and Bella Heathcote are also reported to be testing for parts within the next fortnight.

Will Smith and Russell Crowe are already on board for the big screen adaptation of Mark Helprin's novel, which would be Akiva's directorial debut.

The early 20th-century tale would focus on a thief on the run, who after breaking into a wealthy man's home, strikes up an unlikely relationship with his terminally ill daughter.

Jessica, who has mainly appeared on TV in Misfits, Black Mirror and Downton, made her film debut in Albatross with Felicity Jones.